Greetings, Happy Mother’s Day and welcome to Kevin’s Korner. Chaos isn’t a pit. Chaos is a ladder.

Much ado has been made about State Senator Brad Zaun’s statement that he has carried a gun inside the State Capitol, which a lot of people, including the Secretary of the Senate Mike Marshall, are claiming is “against the rules” … However, upon further review by TheIowaRepublican.com, it appears Senator Zaun in fact DID NOT break the rules …

For clarification, we obtained documentation from the Administrative Rules Committee of 2002, a bipartisan group of House and Senate legislators, which adopted the rules regarding weapons at the Capitol. This was done during the legislature’s first session after the 9/11 attacks. Security at the Capitol was a big concern …

The subject came up again in June 2002. Here are the minutes from that meeting of the Administrative Rules Committee. Betsy Dittemore represented the Department of Public Safety at the meeting and she clarified that the weapons prohibition does not apply to legislators since they are excluded from the definition of members of the public:

Therefore, according to all the documentation TheIowaRepublican.com has seen, the original intent of the rule was to allow legislators to carry firearms in the Capitol. And that rule has not changed …That means State Senator Brad Zaun, as well as State Senator Joni Ernst, did not break the weapons rule because they are exempt from it …

Then again, the Register actually did Zaun a huge favor by boosting his Second Amendment cred. But they still need to set the record straight. Given their recent history, don’t hold your breath waiting for that to happen.

Iowa Democrats have once again shown their true colors when it comes to voter fraud: They simply do not care … Or maybe they’re willing accomplices …

The numbers produced by the DCI investigation should raise alarms for lots of people. Instead, Democrats once again claim, “There is no voter fraud” … Think about that: At least 117 Iowans had their legitimate votes disenfranchised by illegal votes … Control of the Iowa Senate was decided by only a few hundred votes in 2012.

Here are the numbers from the DCI:

–238 investigations

–117 illegal votes cast

–17 cases still being investigated

–27 individuals charged so far

–6 found guilty

–1 found not guilty

–4 cases dismissed

–15 cases still in the court system

–100 possible cases of double voting (voting in Iowa and another state)

–74 non-citizens registered to vote but did not cast a ballot

–682 possible Election Day irregularities

The 100 possible double voting cases include individuals with the exact same first name, last name, date of birth, and last four digits of their social security number that cast a ballot in Iowa and another state.

There were also 12 Iowans who had their voter rights restored due to this investigation. These people were not disenfranchised by Matt Schultz. They were enfranchised by him …

The Dems will also whine that the cost was too great. I wholeheartedly disagree … What price should be put on voter integrity?

Dem gubernatorial hopeful Jack Hatch’s idiocy was on full display again last week. The liberal state senator and N-word dropper from Des Moines demanded Governor Branstad immediately sign the cannabis oil bill so kids needing the medicine could get immediate relief …

Here’s the problem: Hatch and his colleagues wrote the bill to not take effect until July 1. So, it doesn’t matter if Governor Branstad signed the bill last week, this week or next week, the oil won’t be legal in Iowa any sooner …

Additionally, there were some conservatives whining that Branstad had not signed it by last Monday, but the bill had not even arrived at his desk from the legislature. So, Branstad had not read the final draft of the bill … Umm, don’t we want our elected officials to actually read the bills before they vote for or sign them? I know. Crazy concept.

Constitutional Tip of the Week: Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from the consequences of what you say.

Finally, I want to wish a very Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there, especially mine. Thank you, Mom. For everything.

That’s it for this week. Thanks for dropping by. Every passing minute is another chance to turn it all around.

About the Author

Kevin Hall

Kevin Hall brings almost two decades of journalistic experience to TheIowaRepublican. Starting in college as a radio broadcaster, Hall eventually became a television anchor/reporter for stations in North Carolina, Missouri, and Iowa. During the 2007 caucus cycle, Hall changed careers and joined the political realm. He was the northwest Iowa field director for Fred Thompson's presidential campaign. Hall helped Terry Branstad return to the governor's office by organizing southwest Iowa for Branstad's 2010 campaign. Hall serves as a reporter/columnist for TheIowaRepublican.com.